Starship Development Thread #52

Portions of this thread copied from the Starship Dev thread on r/SpaceX.

FAQ

When next launch? IFT-3 is NET Feb 2024, and after completion of the IFT-2 mishap investigation. Candidate vehicles are Booster 10 and Ship 28.
When previous launch? (IFT-2)? Booster 9 and Ship 25 launched on 2023-11-18.
What was the result? Successful lift off with minimal pad damage. Successful booster operation with all engines to successful hot stage separation. Booster destroyed by AFTS after attempted boost-back. Ship fired all engines to near orbital speed then destroyed by AFTS. No re-entry attempt.
Was IFT-2 a complete failure? No. As part of an iterative test programme, many milestones were achieved. Perfection is neither expected nor desired at this stage.

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Type	Start (CDT)	End (CDT)	Status
Primary Date	2023-12-18 08:00	2023-12-18 20:00	Closure Revoked. HWY 4 and Boca Chica Beach will be open.
Alternative Date	2023-12-19 08:00	2023-12-19 20:00	Closure Revoked. HWY 4 and Boca Chica Beach will be open.
Alternative Date	2023-12-20 08:00	2023-12-20 20:00	Closure Concluded. HWY 4 and Boca Chica Beach now open.
Primary Date	2023-12-21 08:00	2023-12-21 20:00	Closure Concluded. HWY 4 and Boca Chica Beach now open.
Alternative Date	2023-12-22 08:00	2023-12-22 20:00	Closure Concluded. HWY 4 and Boca Chica Beach now open.
Primary Date	2023-12-27 08:00	2023-12-27 20:00	Closure Revoked. HWY 4 and Boca Chica Beach open.
Primary Date	2023-12-29 06:00	2023-12-29 16:00	Possible closure.
Alternate Date	2024-01-03 08:00	2024-01-03 18:00	Possible closure.
Alternate Date	2024-01-04 08:00	2024-01-04 18:00	Possible closure.

Up to date as of 2023-12-27

As of 2024-01-05

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Ship	Location	Status	Comment
S24	Gulf of Mexico	Destroyed	April 20th (IFT-1): Destroyed by flight termination system after successful launch.
S25	Atlantic Ocean	Destroyed	Mostly successful launch and stage separation
S26	Rocket Garden	Mysterious	Static fire Oct. 20. No fins or heat shield, multiple mysterious changes. Completed 3 cryo tests, latest on Oct 10.
S28	Highbay	Pre-flight prep	Static fired Dec 29th
S29	Megabay 2	Pending engine install	3x cryo
S30	Massey’s	Cryo testing	2x cryo: Jan 3rd and Jan 5th
S31	High Bay	Receiving aft flaps
S32	High Bay	Under construction	Stacking in progress.
S33-34	Build Site	Parts spotted	To be scrapped in preparation for Starship V2

Booster	Location	Status	Comment
B7	Gulf of Mexico	Destroyed	Destroyed by flight termination system after successful launch.
B9	Gulf of Mexico	Destroyed	Successfully launched, destroyed during Boost back attempt.
B10	Megabay 1	Pre-flight prep	Static fired Dec 29th.
B11	Megabay 1	Finalizing	Completed 2 Cryo tests.
B12	Massey’s	Pending cryo testing
B13	Megabay 1	Stacking	LOx tank stacked
B14	Build Site	Assembly	Assorted parts spotted
B15	Build Site	Assembly	Potential aft end spotted Jan 5th